Funding to transform Cork city halting site is welcomed

A Cork TD has welcomed funding of €12.68m for the redevelopment of the Spring Lane halting site in Cork city on which site investigation works were recently completed.

Sinn Féin TD Pat Buckley, who is a member of the Joint Committee on issues affecting the Traveller community, said the funding is “great news” but said details of the redevelopment are yet to be revealed.

“We did ask to see what the works were and what was going to be done but we’re still waiting on it. But any improvement is welcome. That’s a long ongoing issue up there,” he said. 

His comments come as Acting Assistant Secretary of Housing Affordability, Inclusion and Homelessness at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH) Caroline Timmons confirmed the funding allocation at a recent Committee meeting.

Ms Timmons said that the issues at the halting site were “so serious in the first instance”, that the Department understands why there was a report carried out by the Ombudsman for Children’s Office (OCO) back in 2021.

The No End in Site report detailed an investigation by the OCO into complaints made by 11 families who were living on a local authority housing site.

While the report did not name the halting site, it later became apparent that the report pertained to the halting site at Spring Lane in Ballyvolane.

The original No End in Site report highlighted several concerns about Spring Lane, including damp accommodation, rodent infestation, and illegal dumping.

In December 2022, a newly published report by the OCO found that “significant work” had been undertaken to improve living conditions at a halting site but that there was still a “long road ahead” to make the site fit for purpose.

At the recent Committee meeting, Ms Timmons said it was positive to see the most recent report of the Ombudsman recognising that a lot of progress has been made in Spring Lane.

“To highlight that, we have approved €12.68m in funding for the redevelopment of Spring Lane in Cork,” she said.

“Recognition that living conditions for the children on site have been improved is welcome. It shows that the local authority and residents are working well together, so maybe we can recognise the significant progress they have been able to make.”

A spokesperson for Cork City Council said the council is working to develop a Part 8 planning application for the development of a traveller-specific group housing scheme at the Spring Lane Site and the adjoining lands known as Ellis’s Yard.

“Cork City Council received stage one funding from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on August 4, 2023 in the amount of €12,687,194 for the development of 27 units which consists of 24 three-bed units, two four-bed units and one five-bed unit,” the spokesperson said.

“The housing units will be two-storey units on Ellis’s Yard while the units for Spring Lane will all be one-storey units.

“A stage two funding application for this project is to be submitted to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage shortly and once approval is received for this funding application, Cork City Council will be in a position to initiate the formal Part VIII planning application process for this project.”